It makes a bit more sense why “variolation” is the term being knocked around since the post refers to giving the vaccination by scratching the skin but variolation shouldn’t be used when talking about viruses other than smallpox.
This method of administration is known as:
“scarification vaccination” or “percutaneous vaccine”
” Variolation is an inoculation technique whereby a scab or pus from an individual with a mild smallpox infection is introduced into the nose or mouth of healthy individuals.”
The Chinese practiced the oldest documented use of variolation, dating back to the fifteenth century.
According to such documentation, mild smallpox cases were selected as donors in order to prevent serious attack. The technique used scabs that had been left to dry out for some time. Fresh scabs were more likely to lead to a full-blown infection. Three or four scabs were ground into powder or mixed with a grain of musk and bound in cotton. Infected material was then packed into a pipe and puffed up the patient’s nostril.
Variolation is usually thought of in the (English-speaking) medical world as:
The procedure was most commonly carried out by inserting/rubbing powdered smallpox scabs or fluid from pustules into superficial scratches made in the skin.
Variolation is about smallpox. A term that should not be applied to covid19 or any other virus/disease.
What Robin describes as “deliberate low dose infection” is the process of vaccination using a live virus (as apposed to live-attenuated or dead virus vaccine).
Robin Hanson started it. [EDIT: he wasn’t the first; see FactorialCode’s reply.]
No he didn’t. The idea and terminology has been bouncing around the rat-sphere a bit earlier than that.
Thanks for that info.
It makes a bit more sense why “variolation” is the term being knocked around since the post refers to giving the vaccination by scratching the skin but variolation shouldn’t be used when talking about viruses other than smallpox.
This method of administration is known as:
“scarification vaccination” or “percutaneous vaccine”
Thank you for replying and for the link.
Which is missing some key points about variolation. wikipedia.org/wiki/Variolation
Firstly to expand on the definition Robin used:
Variolation is usually thought of in the (English-speaking) medical world as:
Variolation is about smallpox. A term that should not be applied to covid19 or any other virus/disease.
What Robin describes as “deliberate low dose infection” is the process of vaccination using a live virus (as apposed to live-attenuated or dead virus vaccine).